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Hero MotoCorp has started dispatches of its first BS-VI scooter, the updated Pleasure+ 110 FI. After introducing the HF Deluxe BS-VI and Splendor iSmart, India’s first BS-VI motorcycle, Hero MotoCorp has now rolled-out its popular Pleasure+ scooter with a BS-VI compliant engine. The successive launches across segments underscore Hero MotoCorp’s complete state of preparedness to usher in the new emission regime and further consolidate its market leadership.
Hero MotoCorp’s popular scooter brand, Pleasure+ 110, will be available in the BS-VI variant at a price of Rs. 54,800 (ex-showroom Delhi) for self-start sheet wheel and Rs. 56,800 (ex-showroom Delhi) for self- start alloy wheel. The updated Pleasure+ 110 BS-VI has been designed and developed completely in-house at the Company’s R&D hub - the Center of Innovation and Technology (CIT) in Jaipur, Rajasthan.
Malo Le Masson, Head – Global Product Planning, Hero MotoCorp, said: “We have been smoothly migrating to BS-VI norms, with the Pleasure+ 110 BS-VI coming in quick succession to the HF Deluxe and Splendor iSmart BS-VI motorcycles. Given the strong customer connect of brand Pleasure, we are confident that the new Pleasure+ too will be a hit with the youth. We have lined up a slew of BS-VI products to be rolled out in the market in the coming weeks”.
The new Pleasure+ 110 BS-VI is powered by Programmed FI with Advance XSens Technology, thus enhancing the zippier ride with 10 per cent improvement in acceleration and over 10 per cent improvement in Fuel Efficiency (FE) over the Pleasure BS-IV, In addition, providing a smoother ride and easy starting anytime and anywhere (ease of cold starting).
Pleasure+ 110 BS-VI BS-VI Compliant FI Engine: The updated Pleasure+ 110 BS-VI comes with a 110cc BS-VI Compliant Programmed Fuel Injection engine with ‘XSens Technology’ (Eight Sensors) - delivering a remarkable power output of 8 BHP at 7000 RPM and torque-on-demand of 8.7 NM at 5500 RPM. The Pleasure+ 110 BS-VI gives a 10 per cent higher fuel efficiency, with better performance and up to 10 per cent faster acceleration. The Pleasure+ 110 BS-VI comes with a Chrome Headlamp Surround Front Fascia, Side Accents and a Chromed 3D Logo. It is available in seven colours: Matt Red, Matt Green, Matt Axis Grey, Glossy Black, Glossy Blue, Glossy White, and Glossy Red.


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Condé Nast has debuted new style publication Vogue Man in Hong Kong.
The men’s edition of the famous fashion magazine will be published together with the April and September issues of Vogue Hong Kong and run bi-annually.
The launch of a new magazine is always a cause for celebration, and a new print title in 2021 particularly so.
Vogue Man Hong Kong Debuts With ‘Parasite’ Star Park Seo Jun Covers
The launch represents a positive sign in a moment that is not particularly rosy for the publishing world. In the US, the pandemic has had a dampening effect on newsstands where a study of 45 circulars in 2020 saw 26 titles suffer a reduction in the frequency compared to 2019, said WWD.
The magazine is ambitious to fill the gap for a high quality men’s fashion and lifestyle publication with values of creativity, diversity and inclusivity at its core. Condé Nast said Vogue Man aims to create compelling storytelling and publishes feature writing where contributors are invited to collaborate.
Congratulations to Editorial Director Jacky Tam and Creative Director Grant Pearce, who have put together a stellar portfolio of fashion shoots and stories, including major interviews with designer Kim Jones and cover star Park Seo Jun. And special shout out to Art Director Kasai Sin, Designer Sharon Chow, and the whole team in HK for bringing this gorgeous new project to life #magazines

domain: news


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P2P payments can play a big role in the B2B realm, while artificial intelligence is pulling more weight in the world of fraud. Facebook is seeking more of a voice in digital payments, and work is increasing to solve the payments problem for elective medical procedures.
32 million: Number of consumers who paid for at least one elective medical procedure during a six-month period
$10 million: Investment required for Libra Association membership
Less than 0.1 percent: Visa’s global fraud rate
$50 billion: Potential revenue generated via elective medical procedures if payment plans were offered
50 percent: Portion of corporate transactions still tied to checks


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It's hard to imagine a time when entrepreneurship wasn't a cool thing to do in Boston. That was the case not too long ago, says Airbnb co-founder Nate Blecharczyk.
The Boston native says he always knew he was an entrepreneur at heart, but the local innovation scene was very different when he was coming along.
BostonomiX caught up with Blecharczyk when he was in town this fall to speak at his alma mater, Harvard.
(No, he didn't stay at an Airbnb while he was here. He stayed with his parents in West Roxbury).
Here's what Blecharczyk had to say about Airbnb, entrepreneurship and the innovation economy.
How He Got Started In Tech
Blecharczyk started young — at age 12, to be exact. He taught himself how to code by reading books. Then he began posting his work online.
"And at the age of 14 I got a phone call and somebody said, 'I like what I saw. I want to pay you $1,000 to create something similar,'" Blecharczyk said. "I told my dad, 'somebody from the internet wants to pay me $1,000!' And he just laughed and said 'son, nobody from the Internet is going to pay a thousand bucks.' I said, 'Whatever, it's my hobby, I'll do it anyways.' And sure enough, I did get paid."
He also got more coding work, which led Blecharczyk to start a business that he ran throughout high school.
"I actually almost made a million dollars while in high school," Blecharczyk said.
The experience showed him that he could create things that people valued, he added. And he knew then he wanted to be a lifelong entrepreneur.
Where Airbnb Got Its Name
It all started as a way to earn extra cash to pay rent.
It was the summer of 2007 and Blecharczyk was living with two roommates in San Francisco. Suddenly their rent went up 25 percent, he said. His roommates came up with the idea to rent out a room to people who were in town for an international design conference.
"This bedroom had no furniture, but they set up an air bed and instead of calling it a bed and breakfast they called it an air bed and breakfast. So, Airbnb is short for air bed and breakfast," Blecharczyk said.
The roommates, who were designers by training, ended up hosting three designers, attending the conference with them and taking them out around town, according to Blecharczyk. And, they made about $1,000 doing it.
"It was based on that one-off experience to pay the rent that the three of us came together and thought maybe we can do this for other people and other situations," Blecharczyk said.
A 'Quiet Period' For Tech In Boston
Tech was really growing when Blecharczyk was a teenager in the 90s. And he spent a lot of time on a computer in his parents' basement.
But by the time he got to college and was studying computer science, the tech bubble burst.
"As a result of that, enrollment in computer science at Harvard fell in half. And so the next couple of years was actually a really quiet period in Boston and I think in tech in general," Blecharczyk said.
Spending hours on a computer "wasn't particularly cool," he said. Most of his friends were looking towards business school or law school.
"I was probably one of the few self-labeled entrepreneurs. And there wasn't really a community of entrepreneurship on campus or really in Boston for that matter," Blecharczyk said. "That has totally changed since then. It's a much more thriving scene now."
Could Airbnb Have Been Founded In Boston?
Starting Airbnb in San Francisco wasn't a deliberate choice, according to Blecharczyk.
"I happened to be in San Francisco and we happened to try to do this experiment one weekend and it became a company by accident," he said.
Blecharczyk does see advantages to starting a company outside of Silicon Valley. He says there are more opportunities for entrepreneurs to thrive outside of that environment.
"Silicon Valley is super competitive and super expensive for talent, for office space for everything," Blecharczyk said. "And when you're trying to start something up you don't have a lot of cash [and] you need to be scrappy. So, I think you could be a lot scrappier here and you can be a bigger fish in a smaller pond."
Regulation And The Future Of House Sharing
As Airbnb has grown into a company worth billions, so have concerns about its short-term rentals taking up local housing stock. Cambridge has already moved to restrict short-term rentals. And state lawmakers are considering taxing such rentals.
Airbnb does support regulation and efforts to tax its rentals. The key for them is balance, Blecharczyk said. Sixty percent of Airbnb users say they depend on it to pay their rent or mortgage, according to Blecharczyk.
"We have to be careful that we don't have so much regulation that would prevent all of the people who are benefiting from Airbnb to benefit," he said.
Airbnb plans to continue expanding into new markets around the world — and give travelers more features. (Like allowing them to make restaurant reservations through Airbnb.)
"Ultimately what we're trying to do for our customers or our guests is create magical travel experiences," Blecharczyk said. "We're going to be a one-stop shop and platform for the entire trip."
This segment aired on December 29, 2017.


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Dairy industry must follow changing consumer trends, not fight them, says expert
Charlie Arnot, CEO of The Center for Food Integrity and president of consultation firm Look East, says the dairy industry shouldn't be fighting changes in consumer demands, but instead should incorporate them into their products.
This year has already flipped the supply chain and agriculture industries upside down, but despite that, many consumers are now more concerned with their health than ever, Arnot said. That translates into a rising demand for products that are better for you and also better for the environment.
Arnot said especially young consumers who fit into the Gen Z and millennial groups are driving the conversation on what to buy and where because of their unparalleled activity on social media. Since many of them are "purpose driven," they are looking for products that answer both their concerns on personal health and environmental sustainability.
"I think it's important for us to understand that these consumers are making those value and purpose driven purchasing decisions. As producers, what are we going to do to be prepared?" Arnot said. "Again, (let's) talk about how we're better for the consumer and better for the planet in a host of different ways."
These new demands should be driving innovation in the dairy industry, Arnot said, emphasizing a need to stay competitive with dairy and meat alternatives, especially in the milk aisle. He also reassured producers that no one in the grocery industry believes milk alternatives will replace the real thing, but they will take up a share of the market and the shelves, so it's not something to ignore.
Many consumers are now letting anxiety control some of their food choices, especially anxieties of antibiotics and pesticide residue remaining in food, Arnot said. And with the pandemic still going strong, it's become even more important to ensure personal immune system wellbeing for everyone in the family.
"It really is a result from the pandemic that it's spread across all demographics," Arnot said. "People are looking for what can I eat, what can I consume, what can I do to enhance my immune health to help protect myself, protect my family from the pandemic."
One reason why the dairy industry should stay on its toes is that the meatless and dairy alternative industries are listening closely to their consumer base, making frequent changes to their products to get as close as possible to the real thing, Arnot said.
Arnot said the target consumer right now is what he calls the "flexitarian" – someone who is not strictly vegan or vegetarian, but who explores alternative products in search of a health boost. He said it's very important that the dairy industry tries to attract these consumers back by telling them how nutritious dairy products are compared to imitations.
"Rather than railing against alternatives, here's the smart option, the strategic option for dairy producers: don't rail against the alternatives. Help those consumers who are looking for alternatives understand why dairy is better for me and better for the planet," Arnot said. "We have to continue to give consumers that permission to believe that consuming dairy products is better for them."
Some consumers, who haven't struggled with income loss, are also demanding premium products right now, perhaps as a way to have fun and enjoy something during a dark time. But, Arnot said, there are other consumers who are struggling to survive who are working on a small budget, making it important to cater to both ends of the spectrum with quality products on the higher and lower ends.
Arnot explained that consumers are also changing trends by going online to shop and using grocery delivery or contactless pickup options at their local store. This trend will not go away soon, he said, as long as the pandemic continues and likely well after that because of the convenience. The retail industry has had to compensate for the demand by hiring hundreds of thousands of extra employees.
"Kroger hired ... 100,000 additional associates to be able to manage the increased demand for 'click-n-pick.' People are going online and selecting their groceries and doing the shopping, then drop by the store to pick them up, so they don't have to go in and be exposed to others," Arnot said. "We're really seeing just a fundamental reshaping (of the industry)."
Overall, today's consumers are worried about reducing their carbon footprint as they continue to see environmental disasters pop up all around them, Arnot said. Dairy producers should be ready to tell their story and engage the consumer, letting them know that the industry cares about sustainability too.
"When people see derechos come across the Midwest and around corn country and create storms that they haven't seen before, when we see newscasts talking about the wildfires in California, when we see an atypical hurricane season on the east coast ... people are wanting to know what can I do to have a positive impact on the planet," Arnot said.


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When Rachael Genson’s friend first told her about the Whole30 program in January 2016, she quickly shrugged it off. After all, the Austin-based PR manager had been against fad diets her entire life. But barely six months later, she was scrolling through her Instagram feed when she decided to give it a go.
“My biggest impetus was their highly engaged Instagram community,” she said. “I realized that it was less a typical diet and more an educational program on how to have a better relationship with food.”
She is hardly alone. The Whole30 program has emerged as one of the foremost health crazes in recent years, consisting of a strict 30-day dietary “reset,” in which followers swear off dairy, grains, legumes, soy, alcohol, sugar, and any processed foods. It is not for the faint of heart or weak of impulse. If you haven’t heard about it at your gym, you’ve definitely seen it on Instagram with various versions of the hashtag #whole30 — the program is as much about broadcasting your journey on social media as it is about following the diet.
Whole30 was started by Salt Lake City nutritionists Melissa Hartwig and Dallas Hartwig in 2009, but started gaining steam when its first book “The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom” was released in 2012. Since then, it has steadily elbowed into the crowded diet and fitness program market with an unconventional approach to digital marketing.
Instead of traditional channels, Whole30 has squarely focused on building its brand through user-generated content, a grassroots influencer approach and social media — specifically Instagram.
“We have never done any traditional advertising or had a marketing strategy. We didn’t even do any A/B testing or paid posts until six months ago,” said Melissa Hartwig, co-founder of Whole30. “It’s all been organic, social media, and especially Instagram has really helped propel the brand forward.”
Instagram is undoubtedly its most important platform. The program has 1.3 million followers on its accounts @whole30, @whole30recipes and @whole30approved combined, with over 2.4 million photos tagged with the hashtag #whole30 itself (up from 1 million in August 2015). These different accounts under the brand’s umbrella is deliberate, said Hartwig, as it allows them to easily direct people where they want to go. Plus, cross-tagging the different accounts in posts also helps drive engagement on other profiles too.
“They’ve done an exceptional job of understanding their audience and catering to their needs in terms of their content,” said Melody Lowe, copywriter at agency Drumroll, who has done the program three times herself. “It is very relatable, and getting support and comments from people on your posts is very encouraging.”
Another tactic is to engage its community on a grassroots level, providing followers with not only a forum to share Whole30-friendly meals and their meal-preparation processes but also actively responding to them. The brand’s @whole30recipes handle, for example, is a mosaic of user-generated content, through weekly takeovers from members of its community who share their own recipes and recipe hacks. In fact, the channel was created when the brand realized that’s what the users were asking for, and Hartwig personally comments and engages with the followers regularly on it as well.
“Our posts don’t feature rich 20-somethings in their underwear. They are real people sharing their non-scale victories,” she said. “They like to engage with not just each other, but also us — there are real people behind our channels, not nameless, faceless brands.”
It’s a strategy that has worked, according to Holly Thomas, editorial director at HZDG, because it has made the brand accessible to everyone, not just the “big fish” in terms of influencers. While many brands fear diluting their brand messages and hold their narratives very close to themselves when they’re starting out, Whole30 started highlighting their followers’ stories almost right off the bat.
“They even regrammed one of my posts from when I did my first Whole30,” she said. “They made an effort to highlight anyone who was sharing something interesting, and I think that really endeared the brand and made it feel like it was for everyone.”
Whole30 plans and recipes are available for free on its website, and the website is monetized through affiliate links with a few products and services, partner relationships with meal planning services and a paid newsletter subscription. While it does not carry outside branded ads on its website, Whole30 does have a partnership program — which has also helped boost the brand, according to Hartwig.
The brand lets other brands use its trademark to market its products for a license fee. It’s like a stamp of approval for products that fit within the diet, like, for instance, sparkling water brand Lacroix or non-dairy paleo coffee creamer Nutpods. Hartwig views herself as a budding entrepreneur and has personally invested in several of these health startups, including Nutpods and Kettle & Fire Bone Broth, a bone broth startup by two high schoolers. Moving forward, that’s how she sees the Whole30 brand continue to grow.
“It’s not about the money or the reach; it’s about serving the Whole30 community,” she said.
While it’s too early to say, it might be an effective strategy moving forward. Searches for “Whole 30” were up 292 percent in 2016, and popular paleo staples like chicken bone broth and grass-fed ground beef were up 268 percent and 381 percent respectively, according to search data released by the online order and home delivery service Instacart. Instacart predicts that a growing number of brands will seek to qualify for the “Whole 30 Approved” label in 2017, following in the footsteps of brands like Fatworks Oils and Naked Bacon.
“When we were starting out, our target audience was the relatively young, already fit and health-conscious community,” said Hartwig. “We are now looking to take things take to the next level. Our fastest growing demographic is those between the ages of 40 and 60 years.”
In-game advertising experts question Microsoft and Sony’s gaming advertising plans
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Enthusiast’s lack of a seemingly cohesive strategy for Upcomer is a reflection of the broader challenges it faces as a gaming and esports holding company that is, at the moment, one of the few publicly traded firms in the industry.


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Rothamsted Research scientists have confirmed that crop chemicals can replace fossil fuels in many common everyday items.
They have recently bio-engineered a plant to produce a range of industrial chemicals, the majority of which are usually obtained from fossil fuels.
The class of chemicals – a group of molecules called 4-vinyl phenols (VPs) – are widely used in the manufacture of products such as food and make-up.
The breakthrough came when researchers altered a metabolic pathway in the oilseed plant, camelina, and diverted it to make derivatives of these potentially useful products instead.
This is the first time this has been achieved in plants, and the crop has already been tested successfully in the field.
Using crops to produce the raw materials for industry could reduce society’s reliance on petrochemicals.
“In turn, this which would help the move to net zero,” said Rothamsted’s Dr. Guillaume Menard.
“It’s amazing just how many everyday products are made from, or contain, chemicals extracted from crude oil and its derivatives.
“We all know the issues around the continued extraction and use of fossil fuels.
“But turning camelina plants into ‘green factories’ to make substitutes for these petrochemical compounds is a great sustainable alternative.”
Camelina is an emerging oilseed crop that is increasingly being used to produce a range of speciality food and non-food products in Europe and North America.
In developing this project, the researchers at Rothamsted inserted a gene into the camelina plants so they expressed a tailored bacterial enzyme in the developing seed.
In turn, this redirected the plant’s usual metabolic pathways so rather than producing sinapine from the chemical, hydroxycinammic acid, they instead produced the 4-VP molecules, either in a free form or attached to plant sugars.
Presently 4-VP molecules are commonly used flavour and aroma compounds for food and cosmetic products.
The members of the Rothamsted research team have been impressed by the accumulation of these 4-VP derivatives, with the bacterial gene driving a 95% reduction in sinapine content in seeds of both glasshouse and field-grown camelina.
“This is a great start,” confirmed Rothamsted’s Prof. Peter Eastmond.
“But the ultimate goal is to get the plants to manufacture all the 4-VP molecules in their industrially useful free form.
“We anticipate that step may be doable with more conventional breeding methods.”


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Kentucky to be home to Toyota’s new fuel cell modules facilityAugust 31, 2021
The automaker will make the components for hydrogen powered heavy duty commercial trucks.
Toyota has announced that it will be making hydrogen fuel cell modules at its huge Kentucky auto-assembly plants.
Toyota has been among the major players among automakers producing H2 powered vehicles.
The Japanese automaker has been seeking to commercialize hydrogen electric vehicles for decades. This is nothing necessarily new for Toyota. That said, this effort has greatly expanded in recent years. Now, it will be broadening its production by adding fuel cell modules to the Kentucky plant. These components will be used in zero-emission heavy duty commercial vehicles and long-haul trucks.
Along with using the fuel cell modules for its own vehicles, it will also supply other manufacturers.
“We’re bringing our proven electric technology to a whole new class of production vehicles,” said Toyota Motor North America CEO and president Tetsuo Ogawa. “Heavy-duty truck manufacturers will be able to buy a fully integrated and validated fuel cell electric drive system, allowing them to offer their customers an emissions-free option in the Class 8 heavy-duty segment.”
Hydrogen powered vehicles haven’t taken off in passenger cars, but the technology is moving forward for larger vehicles such as buses and heavy trucks. Toyota is far from alone in pursuing this market. Hino, Hyundai Motor, Cummins, Daimler, Volvo, Nikola and others are all working on establishing hydrogen-powered long-haul trucks in coming hears. The companies prefer this technology to battery electric for heavy-duty and long-haul vehicles due to the large range and rapid refueling speed.
Moreover, the fuel cell modules and the rest of the powertrain are lighter, which is important as every pound counts in long-haul transport. These factors all make the technology appear to be the more viable choice for zero-emission transportation.


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After teasing the return of the Air Max 95 “Neon” — which is expected to re-release later this year — Nike has now revealed yet another colorway of the iconic silhouette, this time opting for a bricolage of colors in a new “Greedy" iteration.
Remixing a variety of original colorways for Sergio Lozano’s nearly three-decade-old design, the shoe remains a follow up to 2015’s original “Greedy” colorway. The latest iteration features everything from “Aqua” to “Hot Red” color-blocking schemes. At the laces, “Volt” lace loops, “Hot Red” branding, and hits of “Aqua” can be found, with the left shoe opting for “Slate Blue” lace loops and “Hot Red” accents. Just as Nike did with the 2015 version for the silhouette’s 20th anniversary, the shoe nods to the model’s “Gunsmoke/Grey Fog” colorway at the lateral sides, with the OG's gray mudguards switched for white. This is finished with black outsoles, and Air Max sole units that feature the aforementioned accent colors.
Take a look at Nike's latest Air Max 95 "Greedy" above. The shoes are slated to drop on April 15 at atmos Tokyo's retail location for ¥19,000 JPY (approximately $175 USD). While no global release date has been scheduled, expect them to arrive at Nike's webstore sometime soon.
For more related drops, take a look at the sketch-clad Nike Air Force 1 "Racer Blue."
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Venezuela’s economic meltdown takes toll on Venezuelans
Amid hyperinflation, Venezuelans stand in line for hours to withdraw a maximum of 16 cents from ATMs. ITV News reports from the oil-rich city of Maracaibo.
Separated by borders, reunited with virtual reality05:46
Venezuela's economic meltdown makes money worth less by the minute03:51
Venezuelan president flies to U.N., posts video about defending country00:57
Deported Ohio mother reunites with family01:31
Maduro brands Trump a 'coward' after his wife is hit by sanctions01:16
Meet the helicopter pilot who saved lives during Hurricane Maria01:50


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The aftermath of the French Legislation on food waste – 26 May 2015
In late May 2015, articles, blogs, and newsfeed buzz quickly spread word about the French legislation freshly adopted by the National Assembly on the reported obligation for supermarkets to donate edible and unsold food to relevant charitable organisations. This achievement was the result of a yearlong study, led by Guillaume Garot, Deputy Minister for Agribusiness and Member of the Parliament. These measures have been passed to the Senate, who will vote on 10 July 2015. If passed, it will become law.
Following the adoption of this legislation, FUSIONS sought to identify stakeholder reactions and assessed the status of similar food waste legislation and voluntary schemes worldwide. Furthermore, a deep look at the original text of the legislation clarified several contextual points about the widely discussed food waste provisions. The following key points arose from this investigation:
A. This legislation is not stand-alone. In fact, the mention of food waste is within the umbrella of the French "Energy transition for green growth” legislation which addresses various other topics including provisions on renewables, CO2 reduction, and energy consumption at large. The amendments on food waste were integrated at a later stage, presently seen within Article 22 of this legislation.
B. Food waste-related amendments extend beyond targeting supermarkets. Food waste considerations were amended into several existing French codes, notably the French Education Code, which indicates that food waste (topics) shall be integrated within school lesson plans, to raise awareness from a young age. Furthermore, the French Business Code legislation added “the fight against food waste” amongst its list of environmental and societal considerations that a company should take into account.
C. Although prioritised, targeted supermarkets may not be obliged to exhaustively donate all viable unsold food to charities/organisations. Rather, supermarkets that have a surface area of at least 400m² will be obliged to manage their unsold food within one or several of the four recovery options outlined within the legislation, depending on food quality. This recovery prioritisation mirrors the EU waste hierarchy, specifically:
- Food waste prevention;
- Use of unsold and viable food (fit for human consumption) via food donation or processing;
- Recovery of unsold and viable food (fit for animal consumption) into feedstock;
- Recovery into compost for agriculture or for energy recovery, including biogas.
To address liability concerns, all retailers must sign over (via a contractual agreement) the responsibility for the donated food products with the selected charitable organisation by 1 July 2016 to avoid penalties including fines of up to €75,000 or two years in jail. Within this contract, quality and usability of the donations will be underlined; in practice, products can only be sent to charities before their expiration date. Although there is a real obligation to sign these contracts, the legislation does not outline the obligation to donate a specific percentage of their unsold food. For this reason, supermarkets could potentially choose to recover unsaleable food via composting or anaerobic digestion, rather than prevention or donation, if more convenient or cheaper for them while not necessarily exercising the contractual agreements with charitable organisations. Although contractual agreements with willing charitable organisations has existed in France in the past, it was not clear to all actors that these previously voluntary contracts indeed provide a mechanism for retailers to transfer the responsibility of their unsold food to charities. This legislation serves as a positive step forward in clarifying food owner responsibility.
D. A ban on the intentional destruction of edible unsold food may act as a positive driver for food recovery. In France and the UK, supermarkets have been known to pour chemicals on unsold food to ensure they are not scavenged before disposal (to ensure that foods are not consumed, as they are still legal owners of their discarded food). With the introduction of the legal measure (via contractual agreements with charitable organisations) and furthermore with the food recovery hierarchy, the legislation prohibits deliberately rendering viable unsold food unfit for consumption.
What about other countries?
Word-wide voluntary initiatives
Voluntary grocery and food retail store initiatives have been set in place by big UK retailers, such as Tesco and Marks and Spencer in light of cutting down food and packaging, however donation schemes have not yet been developed. For the time being, the UK government believes that any initiatives should remain voluntary. This view point is also echoed in Australia, where two food retail giants, Coles and Woolworths both voluntarily donate unsold food to charitable organisations (7.5% and 2% respectively per year), although the amount of unsold and landfilled food represents a much larger percentage, and furthermore its voluntary nature does not drive higher food donation levels.
At the EU level
In the wake of the adoption of the food waste legislation by the National Assembly, an online petition hosted on Change.org was launched in 7 different countries by Arash Deramarsh, the municipal councillor of Courbevoie (France). With more than 530 000 signatures gathered within a two week period, this petition aims at gathering enough public support, along with the backing of influential public figures, to amend food waste law within the EU circular economy proposal. Namely, these provisions would prohibit supermarkets from disposing edible food if an association is willing to recover it (for food donations). This councillor has made significant strides in a short amount of time, and hopes that the movement’s momentum will continue to escalate in order to close in on positive (EU legislative) results in the European Parliament by the end of 2015.
Belgium’s supermarket donation obligation
Although this EU-wide movement has recently begun, supermarkets’ obligation to abide by the food waste hierarchy (prioritising food donation) has already been set in motion in Belgium’s Walloon and Brussels Regions via two pieces of legislation outlined in 2013. However, even if it is reported that supermarkets in these regions are obliged to abide by this law in order to obtain their Environmental Permit renewal, little information exists on its practical application and on its impact on food donation and redistribution.
Reactions and looking ahead
These ambitious measures represent a significant advancement for French food waste policy, which strives to cut the national food waste stream in half by 2025. Critics, such as Jacques Creyssel, the Head of the French Federation for Commerce and Distribution identified this legislation as not going far enough, as supermarkets only produce 5% of the nation’s total food waste. It is believed that this legislation should be applied more broadly to include all food actors (i.e. restaurants –in part via the introduction of the “doggy bag” and households). Furthermore, accountable French supermarkets have expressed that although they assume the responsibility to hand over the donated food in an organised fashion, charities should ensure that they are well equipped with proper infrastructure (i.e. cold chain transportation systems) so that the donation hand-off does not administratively burden either party. Despite this mild opposition, according to a PERIFEM study, 42% of retailer-generated bio-waste is surplus food, which means that there is nevertheless great potential for recovery via donation. Relevant discussions on France’s evident step forward in the fight against food waste will certainly be on the fore throughout this year leading up to the 1 July 2016 contractual agreement deadline.
 Analyse détaillée des expérimentation en cours dans la distribution pour la collecte et le traitement des déchets organiques (étude CONVIS-PERIFEM-2011).


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Sinn Féin Economy spokesperson Caoimhe Archibald MLA has called on the Economy Minister to explore a voucher scheme to stimulate the economic recovery in the tourism and hospitality sectors.
The economy spokesperson said:
“It has been well documented that the tourism and hospitality sectors have been among the hardest hit by the pandemic which is deeply unsettling for tourism and hospitality workers and their families, as well as the wider economy.
“Last month I wrote to Economy Minister Diane Dodds urging her to explore the potential of a voucher scheme in the North which would incentivise people to take staycations and spend money in the local economy and to work with Tourism Ireland to support the sector across the island.
“Sinn Féin has proposed a voucher scheme in the south which would provide vouchers to citizens which could be spent in local businesses who have registered their interest.
“The Resolution Foundation in Britain is now calling for a high street voucher scheme as part of a wider fiscal stimulus package to kickstart the economic recovery and focusing support on the firms and workers hardest hit by the COVID-induced economic crisis.
“The Department for the Economy needs to bring forward recovery supports for local businesses and a voucher scheme should be considered as an innovative way to help our tourism and hospitality sector to recover and prosper.
“I would urge the Economy Minister to engage with the British Chancellor on a support package for these businesses.”


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Key domestic benchmark indices ended marginally higher on Monday. The 30-share benchmark index ended trade higher by 21.20 points to end at 28082.34; Nifty ends at 8708.80 up by 11.20 points.
Shares of Steel Strips Wheels touched 52-week high after the company bagged a record export order for supply of caravan steel wheels for EU trailer market.
Steel Strips Wheels shares ended trade at Rs 752, higher by 7.21 per cent on BSE. It touched an intraday high and 52-week high of Rs 752 during trade.
Shares of Vedanta rose over after its board approved issuance of non-convertible debentures upto Rs 1,250 crores.
Vedanta shares ended trade at Rs 199, higher by 2.23 per cent on BSE. It touched an intraday high and 52-week high of Rs 201.60 during trade.
Share price of Tata Teleservices Maharashtra rose on Monday the company said that it has won 5 MHz spectrum in 1800 Mhz band in Mumbai and Maharashtra service areas.
Tata Teleservices shares ended trade at Rs 6.43, higher by 6.28 per cent on BSE. It touched an intraday high of Rs 6.47 during trade.
Shares of ABG Shipyard slipped after the company said that its board approved divestment of its subsidiary Western India Shipyard.
ABG Shipyard shares ended trade at Rs34.30, higher by 4.41 per cent on BSE. It touched an intraday high of Rs 34.60 during trade.
Shares in IRB Infrastructure dropped more than 2 per cent after the company said the Maharashtra State Road Development Corp had terminated the Mumbai-Pune Phase II project awarded to its arm, Mhaiskar Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, in September 2014.
IRB Infrastructure shares ended trade at Rs 6242, lower by 2.71 per cent on BSE. It touched an intraday low of Rs 241 during trade.


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Turkish authorities opened their own markets in the country’s two largest cities this week in order to sell cheap vegetables as a response to the spiralling costs seen in retail outlets.
In Ankara and Istanbul, shoppers formed long queues to purchase onions, tomatoes and peppers at close to half the price, with a maximum of three kilos of goods allowed per person.
The move to launch 50 state markets followed a 31 per cent year-on-year rise in food prices last month.
“No more swindler sellers any more,” one shopper told Xinhua. “Can you believe that price of green pepper is 16 Turkish lira at the market, and here it is 6 lira?”
Some traders blamed storms in southern Turkey for the price increases, as well as rising costs of labour and transport. Others spoke of increases in plastic bag prices, stall fees, taxes and fuel prices.
Meanwhile, president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose AK Party is preparing for next month’s local elections, pointed to the actions of the traders themselves.
“This was a game,” he said in a speech this week. “They started manipulating prices, they tried to make prices skyrocket. This was an attempt to terrorise.”
Agriculture minister Bekir Pakdemirli revealed that the project would carry on for as long as was needed, potentially becoming permanent.
The ministry revealed that on a visit to fresh produce wholesalers last week, authorities imposed fines on 88 firms for setting unreasonably high prices.


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Made-in-China pretzels recalled in Ontario: Canada
Barry Artiste Op/Ed
Boy this story is sure getting old, almost two years since the last report, it seems everything you slam down your Gullet comes from China, and worries about obesity killing you, pales in comparison to what the long term damage Chemicals such as Lead, Melamine, Asbestos, Mercury, Malachite etc and other metals and chemicals in our Chinese made products, which seems to be every Chinese Food suppliers or Manufacturer send your way for that Low, Low Price Consumers demand, whether it kills you or not.
Melamine, an industrial chemical, in infants can lead to kidney failure. To say the Chinese Government is not complicit in all this, is like saying, Saddam Hussein is the New Messiah and the Second Coming.
Governments and Manufacturers in North America, Europe and other countries who continually allow this to happen endlessly to us, the consumer, are just as complicit when proof positive shows it wont end EVER when profit is the bottom line on both sides of the world!
Short of writing to your politician or manufacturer, perhaps a Nationwide Boycotting and Letter writing campaigns may be a step in the right direction when Manufacturers start losing customers and money.
Who knows what the long term health effects on us and our children will be, for one, it wont be pretty, that is a given.
Lastly, Funny how Governments are all concerned about our health, with banning Trans fats, junk food in schools, smoking, and pretty much everything else under the friggin Rainbow, yet seemingly allow Chinese sourced foods and products used by Manufacturers "Carte Blanche: to hit our stores, makes you wonder whose side they are on. Cause it doesn't seem to be our side!
Just wait till Halloween, one can be certain Candies are next on the Health Hit List.
Made-in-China pretzels recalled in Ontario
Traces of melamine found in two products
Canwest News Service Published: Thursday, October 02, 2008
Two varieties of coated pretzels made in China have been taken off of Ontario store shelves after testing positive for the harmful chemical compound melamine.
Forty-gram packages of OK OK-brand Kaiser Strawberry Dressing Pretzels and 50-g packs of Kaiser Chocolate Dressing Pretzels were found to have traces of melamine and were subsequently recalled, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced Wednesday.
The products, distributed by Dai Jung Distributing of Scarborough, Ont., have been distributed throughout Ontario, a CFIA statement said. No illnesses have been reported from ingesting the pretzels.


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A one-pound can of black powder might have been stolen from a store on Hoke Street. The owner discovered it was missing between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. Monday.
A woman attempted to shoplift more than $1,000 worth of adult and children’s clothing Monday evening from a store in the 1000 block of Rainbow Drive. When she was confronted by store personnel she left the store with a small child, saying she’d dropped her wallet outside.
An iPhone 6S was reported stolen after the owner left it on a table about 11:35 p.m. Oct. 27 at a restaurant in the 1000 block of Rainbow Drive and returned to find it missing.
Someone took a Nikon 7200 camera with three adjustable lenses between 11 p.m. Monday and 7 a.m. Tuesday from a vehicle parked in the 1400 block of Park Avenue.
A 1993 Ford F100 truck was reported stolen at about 1 p.m. Sunday from the 1400 block of Alabama Avenue. The owner said a family acquaintance took the truck to test drive it to see if the brakes needed work, and he never returned.
Someone paid with a counterfeit $100 bill at a business in the 1700 block of South 11th Street about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday. The bill was marked “for motion picture use only.”


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Kerala Food and Civil Supplies minister Anoop Jacob has ordered the withdrawal of all existing stock of Maggi noodles from the Supplyco outlets following complaints against the product.
The food safety inspectors in Uttar Pradesh had filed a case against the company manufacturing this brand, after high level of lead was found in some packets. The inspectors raided shops in Uttar Pradesh's Barabanki. Several states across the country started taking action against the sale of the product.
In light of the issue, the Kerala government also decided to withdraw Maggi from all the government outlets. Additionally, the government has ordered the company authorities to take back their stock of Maggi immediately.
The Haryana government too has ordered probe against Maggi. The Haryana health minister has ordered testing of lead in Maggi noodles.
The Delhi government Spokesperson Nagendra Sharma tweeted that lab testing reports showed Maggi samples unsafe in the National Capital.
The Karnataka government has also ordered random lifting of samples of Maggi noodles from across the state for laboratory testing after allegations of lapses in food safety standards came to the fore.
The West Bengal Food department has convened a meeting tomorrow to take a view on the Maggi row.
Nestle India further said it is "fully cooperating with the authorities who are conducting further tests and we are awaiting their results".
Maggi noodle sales have been hit hard ever since it was revealed that a sample tested for quality by a government agency about two weeks ago contained monosodium glutamate (MSG) and lead beyond permissible levels.
(Photo Credits: Indiatimes)
Hero Quark can be used interchangeably as both, a two-wheeler and a three-wheeler, for personal and commercial operations including e-commerce and deliveries. Hero called it world’s first ‘class changing’ concept vehicle. So, what exactly it looks, here’s our walkaround for you guys!
#HeroQuark #HeroConcept #ThreeWheeler


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Nokia Sells Digital Mapping Product HERE To German Automakers For $3 Billion
The deal highlights the increased value brands are placing on owning interactive mapping services — and controlling their own location data.
Nokia has finalized a deal to sell its HERE digital mapping and location services product to a consortium of German automakers for $3 billion, signaling the increased value brands are placing on owning their own interactive mapping services.
According to HERE’s purchasers, the digital maps will be used in conjunction with real-time vehicle data in order to both increase safety on the road and to introduce new location-specific offers and products to drivers. But the automakers will still invest in HERE and license its technology and data to third parties, Search Engine Land reported, allowing it to remain an “independent provider of maps and location-based services…to all customers across industries.”
Whether or not the new owners — which include AUDI AG, BMW Group, and more — follow through on the promise to invest in HERE on the global level at which Nokia did originally, the move is a clear sign that taking control of location data is of growing importance brands worldwide.
As we wrote in May, Uber reportedly bid for HERE as well, and Facebook struck its own agreement with Nokia to use its location service to power maps on its mobile apps, including its standalone Messenger and its image-sharing platform Instagram.
These numerous deals and attentions are largely driven by brands’ desires to cater to consumer interest in on-demand services, but without complete reliance on geo-data owned by other parties like Google and Apple. By owning an interactive mapping entity, brands (here, Audi and BMW) can develop more customized offerings for users and not have to worry that their data’s “owner” might not have their business’s best interest at heart.
“In the not-too-distant past, people and companies just looked at a map, and thought, ‘One’s as good as any other,’” Marc Prioleau, managing director of location-based services consultancy Prioleau Advisors, told GeoMarketing.“But there are a lot of things that can go wrong. And a lot of things can be made to work better, look better, and ultimately reflect a specific brand in a more differentiated way than they previously have. I would expect the bidding and investing in these mapping companies to continue for the next few months at least.”
In any case, the HERE team and its buyers appear settled and seem optimistic for the mapping service’s potential in its new iteration. “I believe today’s announcement is a very good outcome for HERE,” said Sean Fernback, HERE’s president, in a statement. “The new ownership structure of HERE will allow us to accelerate our strategy, further scale our business and fulfill our intent to become the leading location cloud company across industries.”


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The iPad is expected to have a 9.7 inch screen, while the new version of the iPad mini will have a 7.9 inch screen, Bloomberg reported.
Here are some great tips and tricks that can save you time, and simultaneously allow you to do some really cool things
The best among the Apple-friendly entertainment that's out there.
The new Apple iPhones going on sale this week, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus, have crisper screens, faster processors and sharper cameras.
World's largest software maker Microsoft plans to shift select products from the Android- powered range to the Windows platform as it beefs up the affordable Lumia range.
As the iOS 8 awaits release later this month, here is how to final version even if you are not a tech addict.
Even for newer devices, some apps might not be fully functional at first. Dropbox, for instance, says there's a problem with a camera backup feature.
Lava is introducing its highly customised Android-based OS called Hive through its upcoming smartphone Xolo Play 8X-1000, taking a leaf out of Xiaomi's book.


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New Delhi, Jan 10, 2020-
A Canadian coffee chain is facing an online backlash from Tweeple as it offered free coffee for life if they (British royals Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle) move to Canada.
Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons posted a tongue-in-cheek tweet on Wednesday saying ,”No pressure, Meghan and Harry, but if you do choose to move to Canada, free coffee for life. Think about it.”
As soon as the post went viral on social media, it seemed to be difficult for Tweeple to see the funny side in the message.
Hitting out at the coffee chain, a user commented,”No pressure, Tim Hortons, but you’ll stop losing customers if you use that money for free lifetime coffee for Meghan and Harry to stop nickel and diming your employees into a strike over 10 cents an hour.”
“Meanwhile, I’ve been waiting for a month for a response to my DM about a lost $100 gift card”, added another.
A netizen remarked, “They can afford to buy the company. Your employees can’t afford rent. See the problem with this tweet?”
A post read, “You’re allowing tables and chairs to be removed from stores so paying patrons cannot sit and you’re offering ROYALTY free coffee? Take that thought and set up a homeless free coffee/water station with a sign on it that says ‘please help yourself to our restroom’.”
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry sparked controversy earlier this week, after they said they would be stepping down from Royal Family duties. (Agency)


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Giorgio Armani sales down, profits up in 2016
After slowing down for the first time in 2015, last year Giorgio Armani suffered a decrease in sales, another first. Though hit by the instability caused by the transformation of the luxury goods market, the Italian fashion label is nevertheless still quite solid, with net income on the upswing and a cash flow of €881 million (+35% compared to 2015).
Armani sales fell by 5.3% in 2016, reaching €2.511 billion, compared to €2.65 billion a year earlier. The decline is linked to "the gradual, ongoing rationalisation strategy and to the distribution network upgrade, something which will produce positive effects in the long term," wrote the label in a press release.
"The year 2016 was a tough one for the fashion and luxury goods industries. The causes may be explained with external factors, such as the slow-down of the Chinese economy's rate of growth, the tensions engendered by the spate of terrorist attacks which hit Europe, as well as with political factors, besides the generalised change in purchasing behaviour," noted the group's founder Giorgio Armani in the press release.
In 2016, Armani's EBITDA lost 10% compared to the previous year, down to €462 million, and was equivalent to 18.5% of revenue, while it was 19.4% in 2015. However, in 2016 the group generated a net income of €271 million, growing 12.4% compared to 2015.
Despite the margin reduction, "the results reached by the Armani group demonstrate the strength of the brand, and bear witness to its solidity," wrote Giorgio Armani. "We therefore continue to focus on consolidation and rationalisation, working as always with a vision of long-term continuity," he added.
As reported by FashionNetwork Premium last March, the Italian fashion group is very busy this year with a far-reaching restructuring of its brand portfolio and of its store network, "according to the needs and potential in each country."
The Armani range now consists of three main brand segments: luxury, featuring the main line, Giorgio Armani, the haute couture collection Armani Privé and the design and interiors line Armani/Casa; the second line, Emporio Armani, which incorporates the very classic Armani Collezioni line and Armani Jeans, the younger, more casual label; and finally, the more commercial A/X Armani Exchange line, featuring a young, urban style and also taking over part of the Armani Jeans range.
A/X Armani Exchange has been repositioned from a fast-fashion brand to a "young, accessible" label. Until now available exclusively in the USA and Asia, it has now begun to be deployed in Europe.
Copyright © 2022 FashionNetwork.com All rights reserved.


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Yesterday was ASEAN’s 43rd ‘birthday,’ and to mark the occasion, celebrations are being held around the South-east Asian region, including a flag-hoisting ceremony and an ASEAN Day Dinner in Malaysia today, a youth essay competition in Singapore and a big seminar in Hanoi on the topic: ‘Vietnam-ASEAN: past, present, future.’
The Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN) was born in Thailand, back in August of 1967. But its now 10 member states only started commemorating it with an ASEAN Day in 2007, with the objective of promoting the geo-political and economic organization to more people—especially younger generations.
I found a thought-provoking article in the Jakarta Post published over the weekend on this idea of promoting, or marketing, ASEAN.
The writer, Venilla Rajaguru-Pushpanathan, is in fact the chairperson of ASEAN Secretariat Women’s Wing, who starts off her piece by asking: ‘What is ASEAN Consciousness? Is it Brand Marketing, a foreign policy or beyond that, a vision of community integration?’
Rajaguru-Pushpanathan goes on to measure the promotion of her organization against the more standard business models, ‘commercial or charitable,’ for which she attests successful advertising is determined by the idea that a ‘larger single market is worthier than a fragmented one.’
She also suggests where ASEAN might draw its strength in appealing to its target market, (which I imagine are the people of the ten member nations)—through their commonalities, their, ‘homogeneity in culture based habitual needs for rice, soya, woven textiles; and a common demand for all services that cater to the survival and dignity of life in general, such as health services, clean water services, educational facilities and standards, food supplies and essential financial services.’
The chairperson goes on to note that the active homogenization and fusing of culture and society across the South-east Asian region is already happening, with things like ‘cross cultural fashion shows, inter-university exchange programs, organized tourism and holiday travels, and indeed through region-wide marketing of various business brands and music icons.’
However, she also asserts that ASEAN ought never to lose sight of its human-centric essence, that ‘the brand ASEAN carries within it all the intangible sentiments and histories of its people, the goals of a much larger community of dialogue partners and business councils, dreams, hopes, aspirations and the livelihoods of communities of people in the arts, science & innovative technology, governments and business.’
I’m not sure what exactly to make of this—especially when Rajaguru-Pushpanathan finishes off her piece asking, ‘Will ASEAN ever become a household name? Or as a label of reference, will ASEAN ever be discussed within households, widespread across the region, for food choices, fashion and art trends, educational standards and business brands?’
While I’m all for cross-cultural relations and regional harmony, I’ve never known a major household brand that doesn’t have its own agenda, whether it’s for profit or power, and which truly wants only to serve the ‘dreams, hopes, aspirations’ of its clients.
Rajaguru-Pushpanathan ends her piece with the kind of enthusiasm best fit for a slogan: ‘Yes, if the women and children are actively engaged in building One ASEAN: one home! The ASEAN consciousness!’
It’s all a little strange.


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The U.S. Department of Justice and eight states have sued Google to split the search giant’s ad technology business over alleged illegal monopolization of the digital advertising market.
“The lawsuit we have filed today seeks to hold Google to account for what we allege are its longstanding monopolies in digital advertising technologies that content creators use to sell ads and advertisers use to buy ads on the open Internet,” said the Justice Department’s antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter.
In its blog, Google said that this lawsuit “seeks to determine winners and losers in the highly competitive ad technology sector.” The case “largely duplicates an unfounded lawsuit by Texas Attorney General. Much of this lawsuit was recently rejected by a federal court. The US Department of Justice is doubling down on a flawed argument that would slow innovation, raise advertising fees, and make it harder for thousands of small businesses and publishers to grow.”
Alphabet shares continued their decline on the news, falling 2.6% to hit a session low. In 12 months, the company’s shares fell by 23%.
“No matter the industry and no matter the company, the Justice Department will vigorously enforce our antitrust laws,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said during the press conference.
The lawsuit is the first major case of the Biden administration challenging the power of one of the nation’s largest technology companies, continuing an investigation that began under former President Donald Trump. It’s also one of the few times the Department of Justice has called for a breakup of a major company since the collapse of Bell Telecom in the 1980s.
Google is the dominant player in the $278.6 billion U.S. digital advertising market, controlling most of the technology used to buy, sell and serve online ads. The US Department of Justice has said that Google’s dominance allows it to keep at least $0.30 of every dollar spent by advertisers through its online advertising tools. The resolution of the case may take years.
This lawsuit is the second antitrust lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice against Google and the fifth major case in the US challenging the company’s business practices. State attorneys general have filed three separate lawsuits against Google, alleging that the company dominates the markets for online search, ad technology and apps on the Android mobile platform in violation of antitrust laws.
Kanter, US Department of Justice antitrust chief, said during a press conference that Google had engaged in anti-competitive behavior for 15 years, including “a scheme of acquisitions to gain market dominance.”
These include the $3.1 billion acquisition of Internet advertising giant DoubleClick in 2007, which the Department of Justice is now trying to reverse, the 2010 deal to buy Invite Media for $81 million and the 2011 purchase of AdMeld for $400 million.
The Department of Justice is also seeking damages from Google for allegedly overcharging federal government agencies, such as the US military, that bought online advertising. The agency said the U.S. government has spent more than $100 million on online media advertising since 2019, but the complaint did not specify how much the Department of Justice wants to recover.
Google claims that the Internet advertising market is crowded and competitive. In court filings and congressional testimony, the company said its competitors include other big players in the ad tech market, such as Amazon, Meta Platforms and Microsoft.


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Last updated on October 12th, 2016 at 03:23 pm
Specialty grocer Trader Joe’s will open two new stores in the West this week.
A Hermosa Beach, California, unit will debut at 1100 Pacific Coast Highway on Thursday, Oct. 13. The grocer will open in Bellevue, Washington, at 416 116th Avenue NE, on Oct. 14. In addition, Trader Joe’s is expected to open California stores on Slauson Avenue in Culver City and on East Huntington Drive in Pasadena this month.
Trader Joe’s downtown San Francisco store, at 10 4th Street, is slated to open in 2017.


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The phone with iTunes will do it. To clear the doubts in this regard after the worrying rumors of the past few days, was Ed Zander, Motorola's managing director. The manager of the Schaumburg company mentioned the mobile phone during yesterday's press conference, during which quarterly fiscal results were presented.
According to some financial newspapers, such as the Financial Times and Bloomberg News, the CEO has confirmed that the phone is under construction and will be released "in the coming months". No mention of precise dates, only the indication that the mobile phone (which could be called ROKR), will appear in the range of innovative terminals to which the RAZR, one of Motorola's greatest commercial successes in recent times, and the next PEBL are attributed.
Around the 'Mactorola', fruit of the collaboration with Apple, in the last few days dark clouds originated from the reluctance of telephone operators to commercialize a phone that does not bring any advantage to their balance sheets. The phone, in fact, would only be able to read music transferred from a PC (and purchased from the iTunes Music Store) and not from online shops that can be consulted with the phone itself. This is why Motorola would find it difficult to offer the mobile phone, since it should launch it outside the channel of the operator brand terminals and, as such, apply a price free of the subsidies that the carriers offer on the phones they present in their range. In practice, the Mactorola would cost significantly more than competing products.
Zander's claims let us imagine that Motorola and Apple are counting on resolving these contrasts or, alternatively, they don't care about them and hope to find a way to successfully market their mobile phone anyway.


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UPS is already using drones on top of vans to assist deliveries in rural areas, and now Ford wants to do the same thing in busy cities.
The automaker at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week showed off an "Autolivery" concept that relies on electric self-driving vans and drones to peddle packages from point A to B. The idea, devised by a team of Ford employees in Shanghai, is that the vans transport goods part of the way, and the drones take over for the last leg of the journey.
The system could be used to transport everything from groceries to medical supplies, and allow for deliveries to places "inaccessible by car, such as high up in a tower block -- or where parking would be difficult, impractical or unsafe," Ford said. Say you're getting ready for a dinner party, for instance, and you realize you forgot to pick up the lemons. In the future, you may be able to order a bag of lemons and have them autolivered in just the nick of time.
"It's all about making life in the city easier," Ford designer Euishik Bang, who developed the concept alongside colleagues James Kuo and Chelsia Lau, said in a statement. "The possibility of harnessing autonomous and electric vehicle technology with drones to quickly and easily send and deliver parcels could help to make life better for everyone."
Ford said it plans to have a fully autonomous vehicle ready for commercial ride sharing, ride hailing and package delivery fleets in 2021. Looking forward, the company also expects electric vehicles to outnumber their gas-guzzling counterparts in the next 15 years, and for shared transportation to continue gaining popularity.
Global Venture Alliance took part in a closed round table session organized by Forbes Russia.
Global Venture Alliance is the general sponsor of the event on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the magazine Forbes.
Tim Cook has not-so-subtly hinted that Apple is working on some sort of augmented reality product. And while ARKit may be the start, a patent application published today hints at what Apple could be picturing down the road.
Apple has teamed up with Australian-based Cochlear to bring iPhone users the first made for iPhone Cochlear implant.
Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in June, Cochlear’s Nucleus 7 Sound Processor can now stream sound directly from a compatible iPhone, iPad or iPod touch to the sound processor.
Google’s London-based AI outfit DeepMind has created two different types of AI that can use their ‘imagination’ to plan ahead and perform tasks with a higher success rate than AIs without imagination. Sorry if I made you click because you wanted AIs predicted flying cars. I promise this is cool too.
Scientists at MIT are using Wi-Fi and AI to determine your emotional state. They’ve created an algorithm that can detect and measure individual heartbeats by bouncing RF signals off of people.
Yep. Glass is back.
Engineers will soon conduct a crucial test of a futuristic technology championed by entrepreneur Elon Musk that seeks to revolutionize transportation by sending passengers and cargo packed into pods through an intercity system of vacuum tubes.
Uber announced that it will be combining its rides-on-demand business and UberEATS, its food ordering and delivery business, in Russia and neighboring markets, with Yandex.Taxi, the ridesharing business.
Tesla will up its game in the renewable energy storage market with the largest lithium-ion battery storage facility in the world, to be built for Australia’s Hornsdale Wind Farm, with a completion date of December 1, 2017.
Amazon’s Alexa voice platform has now passed 15,000 skills — the voice-powered apps that run on devices like the Echo speaker, Echo Dot, newer Echo Show and others. The figure is up from the 10,000 skills Amazon officially announced back in February, which had then represented a 3x increase from September.
During official talks with his Brazilian counterpart, Michel Temer, in Moscow on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed the cooperation between the two countries in the field of technologies.
Putin noted that Russia and Brazil already cooperate closely in space exploration and that there are plans to develop cooperation in Earth monitoring from space.
UCSB researchers have proposed a new method for 3D through-wall imaging that utilizes drones and WiFi
The global risk analysis used by big banks, hedge funds, and governments to inform their decision-making around everything from foreign currency investment to foreign aid is getting the machine learning treatment with the launch of the new startup GeoQuant.


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Superdry founder Julian Dunkerton says he is trying to “steady the ship” after the fashion retailer reported an £85m annual loss.
Mr Dunkerton returned to the firm in April, after a lengthy campaign against the previous management, who he said had a “misguided” strategy.
As well as reporting a steep loss for last year, Superdry warned that sales could fall in the current financial year.
In 2018 it reported profits of £65.3m.
“My first priority on returning to Superdry has been to steady the ship and get the culture of the business back to the one which drove its original success,” Mr Dunkerton said.
He said he planned to return the brand to its “design-led roots”, paving the way for a return to profitability over the next three years.
Customers will be offered greater choice in stores and online, he said.
There will be less discounting, a website redesign and a change in marketing strategy as part of the new strategy.
The firm will aim to renegotiate better terms with landlords, as a large proportion of its leases come up for renewal over the next two years, he added.
However there could also be a “minimal” number of store closures in the UK and the US.
Superdry, which started out as a market stall in Cheltenham 16 years ago, was set up by by Mr Dunkerton and James Holder, and went on to enjoy huge commercial success.
But its shares have lost nearly 70% over the past year against a tough retail backdrop and in March the company announced it would cut up to 200 jobs.
Mr Dunkerton is leading the company while it searches for a new permanent chief executive.


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Some of the Generation 3 Pokemon were just added to Pokemon GO in the new update! Check out all these Pokemon and all the new features!!!
The Halloween update has gone live for Pokemon GO, and with it new Generation 3 Pokemon. Some of these Pokemon are appearing shiny as well.
A new Pokemon GO “patch” update was just released for the game. This update revealed that GENERATION 3 Pokemon are coming, as well as many other features!
With Generation 2 Coming out almost a month ago, many of us have started looking at what the next update will be. Check out many theories here!


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YU launches Yutopia smartphone at Rs. 24,999
The first flagship from the Indian handset-maker to be available on Amazon
Micromax subsidiary YU Mobiles launched a new flagship smartphone — YU Yutopia -- priced at ₹24,999 with a first of its kind service called Around YU.
Around YU, which is an integrated suite of services rolled into one discovery window for the users, appears after a right swipe from the home screen on the newly launched YU Yutopia smartphone running Cyanogen OS 12.1. Kirt McHare, CEO of Cyanogen, was also present during the launch.
The phone, which is only available on Amazon starting Thursday, has a 5.2" screen and eight-megapixel camera on the front; a 21-megapixel camera and fingerprint censor in the back.
The metal-clad phone runs on Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor and 4GB of RAM. The 3,000 mAh battery that keeps the phone running supports Quick Charge 2.0 so that you spend less time restricted by the wall charge. The phone comes with House Of Marley earphone as well.
"Cyanogen is excited to continue our partnership with Yu with the launch of Yutopia," said Kirt McMaster, CEO of Cyanogen. "We built Cyanogen OS to be a better Android, with thousands of enhancements beyond stock Android. We know that consumers will love Yutopia's impressive combination of hardware and Cyanogen OS."
Catch all the Latest Tech News, Mobile News, Laptop News, Gaming news, Wearables News , How To News, also keep up with us on Whatsapp channel,Twitter, Facebook, Google News, and Instagram. For our latest videos, subscribe to our YouTube channel.


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“Millions of Americans will be shopping for their own health insurance for the first time this fall—but they will need to look closely to be sure they get the coverage that best fits their needs.
On Oct. 1, new government-backed online health-insurance marketplaces are supposed to launch in every state, sparked by the federal health law. Around seven million people are projected to buy plans there for 2014, many helped by federal subsidies, and the number is expected to swell to as many as 25 million in later years. Adding to that, some employers are considering new setups where they give workers a set sum of money to select plans in a similar type of exchange created by private companies.
Bronze or Platinum?
The health law sets many requirements aimed at standardizing plans and making them easier to compare. On the law’s public exchanges, for instance, coverage will be divided into four tiers ranging from the cheapest, “bronze,” covering around 60% of health-care expenses on average, through the priciest, “platinum,” covering 90%. There will also be limited-coverage “catastrophic” plans for people younger than 30. All plans will be expected to include certain mandated benefits such as maternity care and hospital stays, and they can’t cap annual or lifetime payouts.
Still, despite the rules, plans may vary quite a bit—giving consumers important decisions to make. “Take your time to understand the plan” you’re considering before you buy it, says Carrie McLean, director of customer service at eHealth Inc., parent of eHealthInsurance.com.
For starters, people have to pick an insurer, and in many markets, these could include new players that haven’t sold commercial plans before. The nonprofit National Committee for Quality Assurance offers “report cards” about existing health insurers at ncqa.org.
Importantly, consumers will be able to choose how they will pay out of their pockets for care. The plans will cap the out-of-pocket total for the year at $6,350 for an individual plan and $12,700 for family coverage. But a plan’s charges could come in various forms including deductibles, copayments or a percentage of the cost of certain types of services, a setup known as coinsurance.
“You need to look at it and say, ‘Can I come up with it quickly?’ ” since treatments for a serious condition may soon ring up the total out-of-pocket maximum, says Karen Pollitz, a senior fellow at the nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation. And, she warns, consumers may have to pay out the annual maximum sum twice, if they require care that stretches into more than one plan year.
Another key thing for consumers to examine is what doctors and hospitals are in a plan’s network, says Robert Krughoff, president of Consumers’ Checkbook, a nonprofit that rates health plans and medical providers on quality and cost. Exchange plans are expected to often feature limited choices of health-care providers, and who’s included may vary quite a bit.
To try to figure out if the institutions are the best in the area, consumers can look for quality assessments through resources like the website of the nonprofit Informed Patient Institute, informedpatientinstitute.org; the federal Medicare program’s Hospital Compare at medicare.gov/hospitalcompare; or Mr. Krughoff’s group’sGuideToTopDoctors.org and GuideToHospitals.org.
Some health maintenance organization, or HMO, plans may generally not cover out-of-network services. Plans that are labeled as preferred-provider organizations, or PPOs, may still potentially include large charges for consumers who go to hospitals and doctors outside their networks.
Consumers should also probe whether they could face barriers to accessing certain types of care, experts say. For instance, some plans may require referrals by primary-care providers before a patient sees a specialist, or may have extensive pre-authorization requirements.
Another caution: consumers who require certain prescription drugs should check if their medications are on a plan’s list of covered medicines, and how much they may have to pay to get them, experts say.


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IDology to be acquired by GBG for $300m
GBG, the UK-headquartered Identity Data Intelligence specialist, announces that it has conditionally agreed to acquire the entire issued share capital of IDology, a US-based provider of identity verification and fraud prevention services, for $300m (£233m) in an all-cash transaction.
IDology is a fast-growing provider of identity verification services that helps remove friction both in onboarding customers and in the detection of fraud. Its market-leading US identity verification and fraud prevention services, led by its ExpectID product range, are the perfect strategic complement to GBG’s identity verification solutions.
GBG can quickly validate and verify the identity and location of 4.4 bn people globally and accesses a breadth of data from over 200 global partners to establish trust between businesses and their customers. Having completed 11 acquisitions since 2011, GBG’s $300m acquisition of IDology is its largest to date.
GBG has seen strong growth in the US market. Its existing US identity business has grown organically with customers across technology, payments and retail verticals. Meanwhile Loqate, its location intelligence solution, has offices in New York City and San Francisco and has seen high demand from household names like Abercrombie and Fitch, Oracle and Nordstrom. The acquisition will strengthen GBG’s broader portfolio and enhance the business’ product capability and customer reach.
Over the course of 2018, IDology delivered revenues of $38.2m at a CAGR of 16%, and EBITDA of $16.3 million. The company will retain its entire senior management team and the employee base of IDology will join GBG.
Today, IDology has established itself as the market leader in domestic identity verification and authentication which enables fraud prevention across multiple sectors. The acquisition will strengthen GBG’s portfolio, enhancing the business’ product capability and customer reach.
GBG and IDology have a history of working together in partnership and share a similar culture with a strong emphasis on people and talent. IDology’s US customer base currently accounts for 99% of its revenue, which will provide GBG with geographic scale and help to position GBG as a global leader in electronic identification verification.
John Dancu, IDology’s President and CEO, commented:
“For the past fifteen years, IDology has provided multi-layered identity verification. With the combination of IDology and GBG, we intend to innovate, delivering exceptional solutions for our customers, focusing on driving customer revenue and preventing fraud. With GBG’s expertise in global data, we are all excited to expand our solutions and our trusted consortium network for customers across the globe.”
The CEO of GBG, Chris Clark, said:
“I am delighted to announce the acquisition of IDology. With attractive organic growth, significant synergies and a strong cultural alignment, this is a high-quality addition to GBG. The combination of IDology and GBG enables us to meet growing customer appetite for an identity verification provider with global capabilities and scale in key markets.
“We are excited by the compelling strategic rationale behind this acquisition. It enables GBG to quickly expand even further into North America, a key growth territory for the business. We have already built an exciting domestic presence in the US with Loqate, our location proposition, and IDology now gives us an excellent platform for both identity verification and fraud prevention.
“The Board and I look forward to the future success that we anticipate that our combined business can deliver.”
Today, the US Identity Verification market is valued at $1.5bn*, with a predicted CAGR to 2022 between 7 – 14%. GBG’s acquisition of IDology will provide the combined business with the critical mass to improve its customer offer, operational efficiency and deliver scale in a key target market.


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According to an E! News report this week, Lilo—who is due to leave rehab next week following a court-ordered three-month stint for drug and alcohol addiction—is planning to expand her 6126 fashion brand by branching out into footwear.
Upon her release from rehab next week, Lindsay is going to get cracking on expanding her 6126 fashion brand into footwear. Earlier this year she expanded her collection with leggings and a handbag collection. (Watch out Jessica!)
“She’ll finalize everything when she’s out,” says a rep for 6126, who describes the shoes Lindsay has in mind as “classic, glamorous, timeless with a sexy flair.”
An official announcement is expected early next year and, if all goes according to plan, the line will debut next fall.


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BRICs and beyond: Logistics remains key challenge to Indian expansion
Infrastructure remains undeveloped in India
Getting products on shelves is a significant challenge for food manufacturers and retailers in India, where an under-developed supply chain hampers such efforts. International food groups and logistics companies are working to overcome the lack of infrastructure and, for companies who can offer solutions, a significant commercial opportunity exists. Raghavendra Verma reports.
International companies with specialised logistics technologies able to improve the distribution of branded food products across India could secure significant business, especially those specialising in delivery to retailers, a Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) seminar has been told.
Dr Arpita Mukherjee, of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations explained how at the ‘Food Supply Chain in India: Analysing the Potential for International Business' seminar, staged on Friday (28 March) in New Delhi.
The key demand areas, she said, were: "Not actually couriering or freight forwarding but putting in systems like logistic tracking, implementing processes, cold chain technologies, mass track moving technologies, inventory management technologies and within stores the technologies that will improve the shelf life of the products."
Dr Mukherjee is one of the authors of a study on the subject, which was funded by British High Commission in New Delhi and released during the seminar. The report finds that the supply chain infrastructure in India is not well developed and the majority of international businesses have instead built their own supply chain network or are working closely with foreign logistics service suppliers to create them.
Indeed, according to Sachidanantham Swaminathan, general manager of supply chain management specialists GS1 India, his country's retailers are not helping the creation of effective supply chains, because different companies use contrasting inventory management and packaging systems. They fail to adopt global best practices regarding the common identification of products, services and processes, and are not transparent about how these operate.
This can cause confusion with distributors: "Due to non-sharing of information in retail [chain] there is a discrepancy in 15% to 20% of the purchase orders and the actual goods [delivered]," he said, "Most of the trucks have to wait for three to six hours at warehouse because the data does not match and then it goes into quarantine."
Lately, safety concerns, competitive pressures and regulatory requirements are creating demand for more traceability in the food sector said Rupinder Singh Bedi, chairman of task force on logistics management at the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which promotes good business practice.
"The use of IT for tracking sales and for demand forecasting" is widely known, he told the delegates. Indeed, if large international retailers make a significant move into India, "third party logistic providers will be in demand", he suggested.
According to Bedi, the Indian manufacturing industry could also thrive if it boosted its logistics capacity. There were opportunities to create specific food processing export hubs, for instance selling halal meat to the Middle East, organic food to Europe and the US. It could also build on India's strong vegetarianism tradition to create a vegetarian food export hub.
Sanjiv Rangrass, divisional chief executive of Indian tobacco and food giant ITC's agri-business division, highlighted his concerns over upstream food supply problems, including the uncontrolled use of pesticides, unhygienic processing and farm storage, as well as poor farm profits, which are a brake on improving standards. "Who is going to help the farmer?" he asked. "The entire supply chain has to start from there."
Regarding the business interests of foreign food manufacturers and their local traders, the British High Commission report noted that "due to higher tariffs, sporadic implementation of import restriction and regulations such as FSSA (Food Safety & Standards Act), 2006, it is difficult to import food products into India and this difficulty is likely to continue."
Dr Mukherjee advised that foreign players establish at least one small manufacturing unit in India, which will ease import red tape for other products.
"If foreign companies have a wholly owned subsidiary in manufacturing, they are pampered and treated as an Indian company. They can disable several barriers and avail [themselves of] the benefits of zero import and export duty," she told just-food on the sidelines of the event.
"If a company doesn't want to invest US$110m as Tesco [has done], it can still spend US$50m to open a manufacturing facility and have a better deal than Tesco."
The report cautions that developed country foreign company operating models and strategies may not be successful if replicated in India and the companies should be aware that India is a heterogeneous market where consumption patterns differ across states and sometimes within states. "They should have a clear understanding of the regulations, identify states with conducive policies and select the right partner."
The report added that brand consciousness among Indian consumers is low, but price consciousness is high and it may be difficult for food companies to reap short-term profits. "Sometimes, organised players have to partner with unorganised [unbranded] manufacturers and retailers to enhance their reach," said the report. "A long term phased investment plan (at least 3 to 5 years) with clear strategies will ensure success in the Indian market."
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How business and consumers will shape our recovery
by Tenapo LeeMr. Lee is an economist and professor of economics at Niagra University in New York.
At the beginning of the pandemic one year ago, there was a swift, government shutdown of the economy. Today, one year later, reopening has begun, but the process will be quite different.
It will most certainly not be mandatory and sudden and should not be so. A return to “normal,” pre-pandemic levels will likely take some time and will require flexibility on the part of businesses and consumers.
Hindsight Is 20/20?
In March and April of 2020, businesses that did not follow shutdown orders may have been fined, so they were forced to do so. Now, as reopening begins, the same is not true as it will be up to individual businesses to define their return timetables. We are not China where government dictates what businesses do.
In hindsight, it might have been better to have allowed businesses (and individual jurisdictions) to create their own policies based on the level of disease in their areas and the nature of individual businesses – could they operate without putting employees and customers in peril?
We may never know if we could have prevented the level of unemployment and economic slowdown that resulted from a full-scale national closure. Now, we face the dilemma of whether to open or whether to approach the idea gradually to minimize the spread of COVID-19 as more and more Americans are vaccinated.
An Economy Changed Forever By Pandemic
The pandemic has changed everything. Most Americans have learned and adjusted to living with COVID-19. So, even if we open the economy fully, the economy will be structurally different and not comparable to the pre-pandemic conditions.
For example, the demand for travel (especially air travel) may take years to return. Working from home will likely become permanent in some industries. Remote learning may become more common for higher education. Masks may be a part of our daily lives, especially during the cold weather months. Large, indoor gatherings may not be desirable anytime soon.
Hence, opening the economy fully will mean allowing businesses and their patrons to make their own decisions, allowing for flexibility and efficiency. With freedom, the economy will open slowly at its own pace, shaped by the marketplace of supply and demand. Government may announce that “we’re open,” but cannot determine when “normalcy” will occur.
On the other hand, if government continues its shutdown policies, the result will be restrictions thwarting forward movement and recovery.
With vaccines becoming more readily available to the entire population by May, as predicted by the Biden administration, the dictate should be a cautious, business and consumer-driven return to full operation, based on need and the ability to operate within safe guidelines. We do not want to risk another surge and an extended pandemic.
To shut down or not to shut down, to open or not to open? We must be consistent with our dedication to safety and decision-making must be based on the concept of a free economy, not centralized, economy, especially in light of what we have learned, how we have evolved and our ability to self-direct. Government should not make decisions for individual businesses. We must open the door and let the people decide.
Founded by the Vincentian community in 1856, Niagara University is a comprehensive institution, blending the best of a liberal arts and professional education, grounded in our values-based Catholic tradition. Its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business Administration, Education, and Hospitality and Tourism Management offer programs at the baccalaureate, master’s and doctoral level.


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How Intuit can use Credit Karma to help fintechs take on banks
Intuit’s reportedly nearing a $7 billion deal to acquire Credit Karma, giving it an offering that could empower fintechs to more closely encroach on bank territory.
Much like Square, PayPal and Stripe have used their scale and existing transaction flows to support forays into consumer and merchant landing, Credit Karma would give Intuit access to a revenue stream based on credit.
Intuit did not return a request for comment by deadline, and no formal announcement had come as of Monday morning. But several publications, including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, reported a deal was close.
The combination of Intuit and Credit Karma would address the pressure to cover the lending and transaction execution side of money flows — many of the largest mergers in financial services over the past year have covered the same ground.
It’s the flow from lending that’s the key piece for any digital financial service company that positions itself as a bank alternative.
“Lending is the goal for many fintechs,” said Sarah Grotta, director of the debit and alternative products advisory service at Mercator, adding lending is viewed as an important part of the strategy toward achieving profitability.
Neobanks and challenger banks have been gathering consumers and deposits and growing their base through free or inexpensive services. “This isn’t sustainable,” Grotta said. “Long term, they will look to turn some of their clients into interest-paying borrowers.”
Intuit’s core business is accounting and tax software for small businesses and consumers, but it also supports gig economy payrolls with same-day direct deposit — allowing small employers to manage the irregular payment cycles of contract work and freelance. Intuit additionally offers supply chain finance products, in part through an integration with Bill.com.
Intuit’s payroll service is designed to help small businesses manage cash positions around times of a high volume of outgoing payments. The merchant credit products that Square and PayPal offer are also designed to meet that need, using a merchant’s payment flows as a way to pay down loans to fund business expenses. Stripe also made moves in the past year to offer small-business credit. And Square has moved to offer consumer credit through installment payments at the point of sale, creating an alternative to services such as Klarna and Splitit.
All of these fintechs have a growing base of merchants and consumers lured through easy onboarding to accept digital or card payments. But there’s a limit to that model, since enabling digital transactions isn’t enough to produce profits for many firms. Venmo is popular, but not yet profitable for PayPal.
The strategy also works in reverse. Online lending platform Kabbage has added invoicing to create an added money stream.
As a potential subsidiary of Intuit, Credit Karma does not offer loans, but it provides access to credit scores, credit history, and credit monitoring. Credit Karma refers offers for credit cards and loans tied to consumer data, which is a source of revenue for Credit Karma, and potentially Intuit.
Intuit’s products include the personal financial management app Mint, tying together budgeting, consumer credit, merchant credit, tax and accounting in a single bundle.
Adjacent industries have entered the lending market as a way to finance their product sales. These include cellphone providers, utilities, motorcycle dealers and utility companies; and more recently payments and major tech firms have entered small-balance lending to leverage their brand, payments customer relationship, and customer transaction data, said Craig Focardi, an analyst at Celent.
“Co-branded credit cards are also rising in popularity," Focardi said. "If these new market entrants can manage the credit risk and fraud risk on these loans, it poses an existential threat to the core transactional payment and credit products that underpin traditional banking by banks and credit unions.”
“To make the right offer at the right time, however, lenders need consumer data,” said Leslie Parrish, a senior analyst at Aite Group. “Credit Karma’s rich data repository from a large number of users can be used by Intuit to inform the types of products it offers as well as provide important insights to third parties.”
The trend also places pressure on merchant acquirers, which have gotten larger in the past year mostly through mergers and acquisitions between bank technology vendors and processors — linking credit and payment processing in a single source.
“We are continuing to see a consolidation in the financial markets of legacy large enterprises acquiring newer, nimble businesses that have done a phenomenal job of making inroads into their markets by disrupting their models through price and access,” said Lil Roberts, CEO and founder of Xendoo, a small-business bookkeeping company. “The legacy enterprises are benefiting from acquiring these companies who have built technology platforms that are far more adaptable to the lifestyles of small-business owners and the younger population.”